A Tybee public works crew discovered the carcass of a coyote that had been shot through the chest on the dunes at the 18th Street crossover Tuesday morning.

It’s not known who killed the animal, said Police Chief Bob Bryson, or even when the coyote was shot, but police received a complaint at 2 a.m. about shots fired in that general area. It’s a misdemeanor to discharge a firearm within city limits, Bryson said.

“We don’t have anybody taking responsibility,” Bryson said.

Just last week Tybee City Council directed Bryson to pursue the coyotes on the island more aggressively.

Bryson said he has ordered but not yet received a $1,000 tranquilizer gun and has made arrangements with a local veterinarian to obtain the necessary drugs. The police chief is also ordering two new traps, each costing $300-$400.

On Feb. 20, Tybee will sponsor a seminar in which a coyote expert from the Humane Society of the United States will instruct residents on how to “haze” the animals so they retain their fear of humans.

Tybee Mayor Jason Buelterman said it was council’s intention to relocate rather than kill coyotes.

“We just wanted to use the tranquilizer dart then bring it somewhere so it could do whatever it does in the country, Buelterman said. “That’s what we were anticipating. We were, we are, spending money on the tranquilizer.”

He doesn’t want citizens taking the do-it-yourself approach.

“It’s not legal to fire a weapon, according to city code, unless it’s self defense,” he said. “We’re not encouraging people to go coyote hunting.”

Tybee Islanders have been seeing and photographing coyotes since last spring when one animal, quickly dubbed Wile E., started making appearances there. Many islanders believe there were at least two and possibly more coyotes living on the island before the first one was shot.

The dead coyote was a female, about 60-75 pounds, said Joe Wilson, director of the Tybee Department of Public Works. His crew first disposed of the carcass in a trash bin but later fished it out and removed the head so Oatland Island Wildlife Center veterinarian Lesley Mailler could use the skull for educational purposes. Mailler, who lives on Tybee, said a public works employee who examined the animal’s stomach contents told her it had been eating young raccoons.

Studies of urban coyotes such as a large population in Chicago indicate they eat a diet similar to that of rural populations, said David Mixon, coastal region supervisor for game management at the Department of Natural Resources.

“With the Chicago coyotes, their primary diet was still rodents,” he said. “You’d think they could kill house cats, but a house cat’s not going to take it lying down; it’s a whole lot harder to handle than a rat.”

Several Tybee Islanders have reported unnerving encounters with a coyote that seemed too bold, standing its ground when a person approached. There’s one documented case of a coyote attacking a family dog, Buelterman said.

Coyotes are offered little protection under Georgia game law, which classifies them as an invasive species and a nuisance animal. There’s no season on them and they can be shot with any weapon at any time on private land, Mixon said.

Because of its public safety ramifications, Tybee council member Paul Wolff would like to know who shot the coyote.

“It certainly isn’t the ideal solution,” he said. “I think the police department should make a concerted effort to find out who did it and prosecute them.”

Wolff has suggested relocating captured coyotes to Oatland Island Wildlife Center, recognizing that money would have to be raised first to create an enclosure for them.

Oatland director Heather Merbs said that’s a possibility, though it would require additional permitting and money for the animals’ care as well.

“Us exhibiting coyotes is not out of the question, but it wouldn’t be an immediate solution to Tybee’s problem,” she said.

While DNR policy prohibits certified trappers from relocating coyotes in the wild to reduce the risk of the animals spreading diseases, including rabies, coyotes could be sent to a zoo-like facility, Mixon said. Nor does Georgia law prohibit relocation in the wild.

Coyotes, while not native, are found in every Georgia county. They’ve even made it to other barrier islands, Mixon said. One was shot on Ossabaw. One was shot and another hit by a car on Sapelo several years ago.

While those island niches haven’t been refilled by new coyotes, Mixon said it’s a lot easier to get to Tybee and there’s likely a coyote waiting in the wings to fill in an empty spot there. A DNR study of the deer population at Fort Pulaski turned up almost as many coyotes as deer, he said, and it’s possible the animals move back and forth from Pulaski to Tybee either along U.S. 80 or through the marsh at low tide.

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